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Smart defense cuts possible

Our military can achieve greater savings by pursuing alternative energy, the author argues. |
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• Greater efficiency — The Pentagon last March identified $178 billion in savings and efficiencies at the urging of then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Plans to reinvest more than half of that windfall in new programs must be scaled back to achieve greater net cost reduction.

• Nuclear weapons — The budget for nuclear weapons should be strictly scrutinized for excess capacity. One proposal from the Air War College estimated potential savings of $43 billion through fiscal year 2015.

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• Iraq and Afghanistan — Ending these wars will save the American taxpayers more than $100 billion a year.

Finally, our military can achieve even greater cost savings by aggressively pursuing alternative energy. Indeed, there might be no better example of how the military can do more with less.

Earlier this year, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus proudly recognized his department’s role as the nation’s leader in the quest for alternative energy. An investment of $40 million today can return to the Navy $65 million a year by reducing the need for fueling flights and aerial tankers, he noted. And the Navy is pursuing this goal primarily for one reason, he said: “It makes us better war fighters.”

It saves money and it saves lives. One Marine is killed by an insurgent attack for every 50 truck convoys that travel through Afghanistan — and fuel supplies make up most of those cross-country convoys.

In an uncertain world, we must develop a defense budget that meets the needs of our troops, improves our national security and provides sustainability for our defense industrial base.

I agree with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta that we cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past and hollow out our forces. A trillion-dollar cut, he said, “would leave our military deficient in people, in training and equipment and unable to adapt when the next security challenge comes along.”

At the same time, the secretary recognizes the need to make significant and prudent cuts. I believe he is a man who is equal to the task, as is the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. And I look forward to working together with him.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) is a member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.

Readers' Comments (13)

& how about this? from a Defense Department report presented to the Senate:

WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - Hundreds of defense contractors that defrauded the U.S. military received more than $1.1 trillion in Pentagon contracts during the past decade.

Tthe Pentagon paid $573.7 billion during the past 10 years to more than 300 contractors involved in civil fraud cases that resulted in judgments of more than $1 million, $398 billion of which was awarded after settlement or judgment for fraud. When awards to "parent" companies are counted, the Pentagon paid more than $1.1 trillion during the past 10 years just to the 37 top companies engaged in fraud.

Another $255 million went to 54 contractors convicted of hard-core criminal fraud in the same period. Of that total, $33 million was paid to companies after they were convicted of crimes.

Some of the nation's biggest defense contractors were involved.

For example, Lockheed Martin in 2008 paid $10.5 million to settle charges that it defrauded the government by submitting false invoices on a multi-billion dollar contract connected to the Titan IV space launch vehicle program. That didn't seem to sour the relationship between Lockheed and the Defense Department, which gave Lockheed $30.2 billion in contracts in fiscal year 2009, more than ever before.

In another case, Northrop Grumman paid $62 million in 2005 to settle charges that it "engaged in a fraud scheme by routinely submitting false contract proposals," and "concealed basic problems in its handling of inventory, scrap and attrition." Despite the serious charges of pervasive and repeated fraud, Northrop Grumman received $12.9 billion in contracts the next year, 16 percent more than the year before.

The best way to save money on defense is to prevent those who pushed us into Iraq from pushing us into war with Iran, also unnecessary. The long-term costs of the Iraq War are estimated to be $3 trillion; this includes long-term care of the wounded vets, replacement of military equipment; interest on all the money we borrowed to fund the war, higher recruiting costs, etc. We were lied into the Iraq War by the Israel Lobby neocons who fixed the intelligence. Zionist neocon Douglas Feith's Office of Special Plans in the Pentagon was created in order to find evidence "that Saddam Hussein had close ties to Al Qaeda, and that Iraq had an enormous arsenal of chemical, biological, and possibly even nuclear weapons." (See Seymour Hersh's book Chain of Command) all

The Defense Department has an audit agengy called DCAA (Defense Contractors Audit Agency). It is the job of this agency to make sure the government is not overcharged, nor defrauded. If this Agency is not doing its job, then we have a big problem.

Military spending is out of control. Ending the wars will definitely help.

Dems always campaign on 'smart defense cuts' but recoil at the slightest cut back in social programs. Hold Medicare increases to the rate of inflation and demwits rant that “grandma is getting pushed over a cliff.” Object that 26 year old men are not ‘children’ and should not be covered by government medical and social programs and we get the "Republicans are hurting our children" whine.

With all due respect to Rep. Marcy Kaptur - she has never served in the military and has no idea, despite her length of service in the House of Representatives, of what it is like to serve, or of national strategy, or of the purpose and design of weapons systems our military uses. She is a Progressive Liberal who only knows how to cut defense spending, not spending for social services, transfer of wealth and all the other causes Liberals adore. She says the DOD's budget has grown the most of any department, but since Obama's election that is certainly not the case. Kaptur, Pelosi and other Liberals have increased domestic discretionary non-military spending by 25% in the first two years of Obama's Presidency EXCLUDING the failed $800+ billion Stimulus bill. Last year, under Pelosi's leadership, the House failed to even pass a budget despite a record $1.5 trillion deficit. And the House passed NO appropriations bills, including one for Defense, the committee on which Marcy serves. Please ask Marcy to comment on the average age of ships, aircraft, tanks and other systems the military has in service today. In most cases today's soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines are using equipment their fathers if not their grandfathers used. And Marcy's venom for military contractors is nonsensical - is her idea of creating or saving jobs in America forcing defense contractors to layoff people? Can Marcy point to a single example where the Federal Government can do something more efficiently and cheaper than private industry? If America is weakened by Marcy's inability (along with Obama and all his Liberal friends) to adequately fund our military, then our kids and grandkids had better learn Mandarin Chinese.

TO Michael 1973 - Did you know that while we are cutting spending on the military - in particular, on procurement, Obama is actually hiring about 500 new DCAA auditors? Does it make sense to you to hire more auditors at the same time you are cutting spending? And as for the other comments regarding so-called fraud, you all need to remember how extremely complicated Defense contracts are, and the billing procedures. Hundreds of thousands of invoices are filed for tens of thousands of Defense contracts each year. The number of errors is nonetheless quite low. There is simply no motivation for large contractors doing business with DOD to commit fraud - they would much rather stay in good graces and correct any errors quickly. Remember, Tim Geithner, Obama's Treasury Secretary, filed his income tax form with errors but was still confirmed by the Senate. If you want to see real fraud, waste and abuse, look instead to Social Security Disability payments, HUD construction contracts, Medicare and Medicaid, and Obama's green energy grants and loans like Solyndra.

To: Willbheard - Wow - that is sure a bunch of anti-Semitic nonsense you spouted. Pray tell, how long have you been convinced the world is at threat from a Zionist conspiracy? Did you grow up reading Adolph Hitler's propaganda? Or have you been just listening to Iranian propaganda? Of course, Iran fears the US will get tough as it tries to develop nuclear weapons and delivery systems. We fear they will use them on Israel, the US military bases or fleets in the region, and/or our allies. We fear they will give them to terrorists, since they already support Hamas and Hezbollah, and have ties to Al Qaeda. For more than 30 years, Iran has called America the Great Satan and Israel the Little Satan. How much warning do you need to know when you are being threatened?

Amen. The US overspends on defense technology, and over-engineers its systems for threats that do not exist. The Abrams tank is a perfect example. It is too heavy, too fuel inefficient, and too advanced compared to the tanks it will face in battle. The US would be just as successful with a tank costing half as much. The Air Force could have stopped at the F16 as till be superior to anything it will face. For all of the advantages of stealth, the F116 is already end of life, what was the ROI on that?

At the same time, the US does not equip its armies for the wars it does fight. The forces are totally mismatched for asymmetric warfare. Its forces are too cost-ineffective for long term insurgencies.

In the unlikely event, due to nuclear deterrence, of real land war with a major power, the US is so expensively equipped that it could not withstand or replace normal battlefield losses.

Ironically, the one area the US really needs defense dollars is a navy. And that is the one area that has dropped well below any reasonable defense level.

Yeah, there is room for a lot of cuts. First, review each and every general/admiral officer currently serving. The Military is top heavy, not only is it the cost of those officers, but their staffs, offices and whomever is in their chain of command. Next, look at all the different departments and offices to determine which is beneficial and/or actually doing something and those that are filled with time servers or are underutilized/waste of time,money and resources. Then determine what is most cost efficient without reducing readiness/effectiveness in procurement. And lastly, get the politicians out of the loop. Each and every one of them has some defense lobbyist or business trying to buy their support in keeping the status quo, or increasing spending for them.

Close all bases in the Pacific except South Korea and Okinawa. Japan and Thailand haven't faced a threat in decades.

Foreign policy: support Israel, South Korea and block China from threatening Taiwan.

Retire all military with 25 years service, promote younger people.

Freeze salaries for 04 (Major) and E8 (MSG) and above for 5 years. Continue pay raises each year for grades below.

Retire all civil servants, not just Defense, with 25 years service, promote younger people. This ensures retirement with pensions, not job losses by cuts. Freeze salaries for GS-12 and above for 5 years, they make excellent money now.

Pursue the "Obama" doctrine of coalitions for conflicts except for humanitarian unilateral actions like South Sudan, which is very necessary Google Joseph Kony.

Our air force can deploy troops anywhere in the world within 24 hours and our carriers and subs can project power anywhere in the world. We would still be the most powerful military on earth. Russia is not a threat to anyone except maybe the Caucasus'.

Finally, our military is tired. They need to come home, rest, train and be ready.

Get out of Afghanistan, it can't be rebuilt, can't be "nation built" even less than Iraq could.

Put an Air Mobile Brigade, reinforced by Drones and Special Forces, somewhere in Afghanistan, Pakistan or Incerlik, Turkey. Let intell do its slow work but when it gets a target like bin Laden, Al-Awaki, a group or squad somewher, strike.